[Influence of nutritional status, hormones serum levels, and family history on breast cancer development].

Background: Several studies have analyzed the relation between obesity and the hormonal imbalances generated by overweight and a family history of breast cancer. All of these factors are potentially implicated in the early development of breast cancer.
Aim: To verify the existence of a significant relation between the nutritional status of breast cancer patients, their hormone serum levels (estrogens, prolactin, and progesterone), and the existence of a family history of breast cancer.
Material and Methods: Retrospective data was collected from clinical records of 524 women diagnosed with breast cancer in a Spanish hospital.
Results: There was a positive association between estrogen, progesterone and prolactin serum levels and body mass index. The elevations in hormone levels occurred earlier in life among women with a family history of breast cancer. A two way ANOVA found a significant association between progesterone and prolactin levels with the age at diagnosis of breast cancer.
Conclusions: Extreme serum levels of these hormones appear to be related to the early development of breast cancer, which in turn is influenced by the existence of a family history of cancer among those women with normal or average hormone levels.